


the star I follow

by DramaticalHearts (kusokawaii)



Category: Dr. STONE (Anime), Dr. STONE (Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, American Politics, Anal Sex, Bottom!Xeno, Dating, Dirty Talk, Discord: The Kingdom of Shipping (Dr. STONE), Established Relationship, Gift Exchange, Kissing, M/M, Marriage, Marriage Proposal, Military Backstory, Oaths & Vows, Original Character Death(s), Pillow Talk, Post-Petrification, Pre-petrification, Presents, Romantic Soulmates, Slow Dancing, Stargazing, Suicide mention, TKSSecretSanta2020, TKSevents, Tuxedos, Wedding Planning, Wedding Rings, Weddings, Wine, top!Stanley
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:15:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28270758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kusokawaii/pseuds/DramaticalHearts
Summary: War is over, if you want it...It's the night before the 'tech expo', and Stanley Snyder has a plan.After the loss of a close friend and comrade, Stanley has been reevaluating his life and the direction it's taking — unfortunately, it's meant that he's been distant from Xeno during that time, scarcely a call or text.Tonight, that will change: He's made a dinner reservation at a restaurant in the town closest to Pinnacles National Park, and he'll tell Xeno everything, and his plan to change the direction of his life — and theirs.If he had only known how much things would change, the very next day...After thousands of years, will he still feel the same?[Written for venuslia for the TKS Secret Santa Exchange!]
Relationships: Stanley Snyder/Dr. Xeno
Comments: 4
Kudos: 41
Collections: 2020 TKS Secret Santa, want to draw this





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [venuslia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/venuslia/gifts).



> Merry Christmas, Lia!! I'm your secret santa! :D
> 
> I absolutely loved the first prompt you gave, and I took it and _ran_ with it.  
> I definitely went a little overboard, but I couldn't help myself ^^' But I've had a lot of fun with it!!  
> This isn't specifically Christmas-themed (I couldn't fit it in anywhere), but hopefully my few little Christmas-y references will suffice, lol
> 
> I hope your holiday is a good and safe one, and that this fic will make it all the merrier! <3
> 
> Special thanks to [coolangelsthesis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/coolangelsthesis/pseuds/coolangelsthesis) for beta-reading this for me!

It was an inauspicious occasion. One that seemed to forebode ill fortune, an unveiling of a secret grand conspiracy, or the prelude to war.

It was not the most _ideal_ circumstance for a romantic outing.

But it _was_ the best opportunity for one that had come along for them in a _long_ while.

So perfect, in fact, it almost felt like fate. If Stanley believed in such a thing, at least.

(Xeno certainly would have said so.)

For Stanley had recently come to a decision, at last. A fateful one that would determine his future from here on out.

And so, Stanley reserved a private table at a small restaurant, the night before the DARPA tech expo.

They had had a pleasant breakfast of ribeye steak and eggs, at the restaurant attached to the motel they were staying in, in the city of Soledad — a short drive from Pinnacles National Park, it was the most logical choice, and many of the other elites who had been called to the expo had also settled on this well-furnished inn.

Stanley could easily tune out the bustling noise of the other patrons though, as Xeno happily chatted about doing a small tour of the area before their official duties the next day — he had never had the opportunity to visit this part of the state before, he said.

“Sure,” Stanley agreed, before pulling out his smartphone, showing the screen to Xeno. “If you don’t mind me being a bit presumptuous, I reserved a table here, for tonight.”

“Oh?” Xeno peered at the phone, before Stanley allowed him to take it for a closer look. He scrolled through the web page, his dark eyes scanning the contents. _Taste of the Pinnacles,_ the establishment was called.

“It’s a lounge and wine bar,” Stanley elaborated.

“We could have wine here,” Xeno said, referring to the restaurant they were currently in, his eyes darting up to Stanley’s.

“In this zoo?” Stanley smirked, gesturing to the bustling crowd dining and drinking and chatting around them.

“Fair point,” Xeno said with a chuckle. “It’s a date, then?” he said with a soft, knowing smile.

“Yeah, something like that,” Stanley replied with a small smile of his own.

Xeno let out a soft, fond sigh. “I’ve missed you so much, Stan. It’s been so long. I was beginning to worry that you were getting sick of me,” he said with a laugh.

“Never,” Stanley said with a shake of his head. “I’m sorry… there’s been a lot going on. I’ll explain everything tonight, alright?”

“Alright,” Xeno said, meeting Stanley’s blue eyes with a gentle smile.

That night, Stanley dressed in his second-finest (first was his Captain’s uniform, and he certainly wasn’t wearing _that_ to a wine lounge): a dark suit and navy blue tie. He waited for Xeno to finish getting ready, having already used a ride-sharing app on his phone to call themselves a car. 

(He wasn’t sure how much they’d have to drink tonight, and he didn’t want to take any chances — he had already conducted a rapid background-check of the driver while he waited.)

At last, Xeno exited, making his way down the stairs.

Looking at him, Stanley felt his breath being swept away.

He looked, well… _elegant._ His finest three-piece suit, one that he likely _didn’t_ plan on wearing to the tech expo, with a storm gray coat and vest, off-white shirt, and a black necktie that complimented his eyes, his hair perfectly coiffed, carrying an air of confidence as he strode down the stairs toward Stanley.

Not for the first time, Stanley wondered why Xeno even looked his way.

Stanley shook his head slightly, dispelling the notion. It didn’t matter _why_ he looked his way, but that he _did._ Besides, Stanley still remembered meeting ten-year-old Xeno, what a _nerd_ he was, excitedly rambling about the railgun he had just made himself. That was Xeno.

But this side of Xeno wasn’t a lie or a front — this elegance was him, too. Stanley loved all of Xeno’s sides — because no matter what, he was honest. He was a _weirdo;_ he had an interest in some unsavory things, like ballistic missiles and biological weapons — but he was upfront about it. He never felt the need to hide who he was, from his interests to his larger-than-usual forehead, or to lie or put up superficial fronts to please others. He was unabashedly _himself,_ and that was what Stanley loved about him. Stanley had long grown tired of other people’s dishonesty, the games they’d play and the ways in which they’d conceal their true selves. What you saw with Xeno is what you got, and you always knew where you stood with him.

Stanley, meanwhile, hadn’t been so upfront with him lately, even to the point of almost avoiding him… but that would end tonight.

Xeno reached the bottom of the stairs, straightening his clothes before meeting Stanley’s eyes. “Ready?”

“Ready.” Stanley opened the door for him, and they both exited the motel, entering the ride-share vehicle parked just outside.

After a brief conversation with the driver, they were off. Xeno turned to Stanley.

“Do they allow smoking at this restaurant? The website didn’t say.”

“I didn’t check. Gonna try to go without it tonight,” Stanley replied.

Xeno’s eyebrows raised. “Oh? Best of luck, then,” he said with a little smile.

Stanley nodded in response. He knew how much Xeno disliked his smoking, and though he couldn’t quit just yet, he had been testing the waters with going for at least a few hours at a time without lighting up, especially when he planned on spending time with Xeno indoors. He hoped that the wine would be enough to soothe his nerves tonight.

They soon arrived at the small establishment — roughly the size of a one-story house — and they walked together toward the entrance, past the large _Taste of the Pinnacles_ sign emblazoned on the side of the building, their footsteps audible on the wooden walkway.

“Right this way, Mr. Snyder, Mr. Wingfield,” the hostess said after welcoming the two, leading them to the table that had been reserved, right near the fireplace.

They took their seats in the black leather chairs, across from each other. Stanley’s eyes wandered to the flatscreen television hung from the corner of the wall, it was currently showing a baseball game. “That can be turned off, right?”

“Yes, of course,” the hostess replied, before scurrying off to the bar to grab the remote, turning the TV black in seconds. She came back to their table, menus in hand. “Let me know when you’re ready.”

“Will do,” Stanley nodded, and turned to Xeno, who was currently taking in the surroundings.

“This is an intimate little place, isn’t it?” he said, gazing at the modest layout.

“Yeah. Couldn’t find a finer restaurant on short notice. But the wines are good, they say.”

“So I’ve heard!” Xeno said, turning back to Stanley. “I’m looking forward to trying a wine from this region.” He peered down at the wine list in his hand, studying it closely.

“I dunno much about wine, so I’ll have whatever you’re having,” Stanley said, giving a cursory glance at his menu. _Jalapeno-cheese pretzels… that sounds good. Then, I’ll have the tri-tip sandwich… Xeno’ll probably want the cheese platter, and the salad, with steak._

As predicted, Xeno selected the cheese platter, and ordered a Pinot noir wine.

“I’ll have that, too,” Stanley told the waitress, to which Xeno followed with, “Just bring the bottle, if you may?”

The waitress nodded eagerly, before walking to the wine rack to grab Xeno’s selected bottle.

“You must be confident,” Stanley said to Xeno after she left the table.

Xeno leaned back with a confident little scoff. “I’m fond of Pinot noir, and I know for a fact that the year of that one was a good one, as far as grape-growing was concerned. If I’m wrong, I’ll be greatly surprised.”

“So will I,” Stanley said with a small smile, looking out the window next to their table. The sun was just setting, casting a golden glow through the window and across the restaurant. Xeno, too, was cast in a golden hue.

The wine bottle was brought over moments after, the cheese platter following shortly after. When Stanley’s jalapeno-cheese pretzels were placed in front of him, Xeno raised an eyebrow.

“Still can’t believe you ordered those,” he said with an amused smile.

“Hey, they sounded good.” As if to prove a point, he picked up one and took a big bite of it. The spicy, cheesy, doughy flavor spread across his tongue. “Mm!” He took a moment to chew and swallow before speaking again. “Damn good.”

Xeno glanced down at the plate again, before pouting a little. “Well let me try some…”

Stanley chuckled, breaking off a piece of one of the pretzels and reaching forward, putting it in front of Xeno’s lips. With a smirk, Xeno closed the distance, taking the whole piece into his mouth, brushing his lips on Stanley’s fingers as he did so.

He was no easily-flustered teenager, but Stanley felt his face warm at the contact regardless. _God, that was hot,_ he thought with a smirk of his own.

“Mm,” Xeno feigned obliviousness of Stanley’s reaction as he chewed the piece of pretzel. “Not bad. It isn’t quite _elegant,_ but it is delicious.”

“Right?”

Xeno nodded in agreement, before turning to his wine, which had been poured into two glasses for the both of them, the bottle left on the table. He picked up his glass, swirled its contents, and smelled the aroma, before finally taking a sip.

“Well?” Stanley asked.

“Mmm…” Xeno swallowed, then broke into a smile. _“Elegant!”_ He took a breath, then continued. “Just the right amount of complexity and sweetness, and the fragrance is absolutely divine. Try it, Stan,” he said, an eagerness in his eyes.

Stanley picked up his own glass, and mimicked Xeno’s movements, carefully swirling the wine, sniffing it — _it does smell good,_ he thought — before taking a testing sip.

The flavor burst over his taste buds, strong at first, with a sweet finish that made for a pleasant balance.

“I dunno much about wine, but that’s pretty good.”

“Right?!” Xeno said with a childlike excitement. “Even a wine novice can tell.”

“Wine novice… ?” Stanley said with a slanted smile. It was true, though — beer was his usual go-to, as far as alcohol went.

They both laughed, and soon fell into easy conversation, their dinner selections — the tri-tip steak sandwich for Stanley, and a Pinnacles salad with steak for Xeno, as predicted — being brought out not long after. 

“How’s work been?” Stanley said. Not a _great_ lead-in, but he had to start somewhere.

_“ Not_ including top secret government intel?” Xeno replied with a smirk.

“Well, yeah,” Stanley said, knowing just what he was referring to. He had reported his own observations of the stone swallows to him via email, up to now.

“Ahh, well, I’ll keep things vague, then. It’s been going about as well as can be expected.” Xeno sipped more of his wine. “Remember Senku Ishigami?”

“How could I forget?” For six years now, Stanley had listened to Xeno’s delighted, sometimes prideful bragging over his long-distance mentee every so often, though their communications had become less frequent as of late — the boy able to figure out most things for himself, now.

“Well, what if I told you the data he has uploaded may well be the reason this summit is taking place?”

“You’re kidding.”

“Not at all. He observed something that not even I thought to check.”

“Sharp kid,” Stanley said, taking a sip of his own wine. “Well, I guess he’s not really a kid anymore, huh.”

“Mm. He’s become a brilliant young man. He’s going to be a remarkable scientist someday.”

“Maybe he’ll even surpass _you,”_ Stanley smirked.

Xeno smiled, his dark eyes alight. “He may very well do so. I look forward to it.”

He finished his salad, then met Stanley’s eyes. “Don’t bury the lede now! Tell me, what have you been up to lately?”

Stanley sighed. He had pointed the conversation in this direction, yes, but he wasn’t enthusiastic about it regardless. At least the wine was helping to calm his nerves. “Well… remember Lucas?”

“Sure, the guy you befriended in sniper training.”

Stanley let out another sigh, two of his fingers going to his mouth, in want of a cigarette he didn’t have to light. “He killed himself last month.”

Xeno made a small gasp. “I’m sorry…” His pale brows furrowed. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? That had to have been rough…”

Stanley sighed through his nose. He had no good answer for that. “...It hit me harder than I expected. Between that and the funeral… I had a lot on my mind.”

Xeno sighed, a bit dramatically. “I know you prefer to handle your emotions on your own, Stan, but honestly, it’s alright to lean on me once in a while.”

“I know, it’s just,” Stanley shook his head. “It made me think over a lot of things.”

“Like what?” Xeno replied, a curious look in his eyes.

Stanley fidgeted in his chair. He _really_ needed a smoke.

“Ah, would you be more comfortable if we sat near the fireplace?” Xeno said, noticing Stanley’s discomfort and gesturing toward the upholstered chairs near the unlit fireplace located behind their table.

“Sure,” Stanley said, getting up from his chair. They had finished their meal moments prior, but had yet to finish their wine, so they took their glasses and the bottle with them to the fireplace.

Xeno wasn’t wrong — these chairs were a lot more comfortable, at least once Stanley moved the useless throw pillow on it. They sat across from one another, holding their wine glasses between their fingers, Xeno with a patient, expectant look, and Stanley collecting his thoughts. He couldn’t help but notice how _elegant_ Xeno’s fingers looked wrapped around that glass — long and slender, capable of such precise skill. Briefly he pictured Xeno as a concert pianist, flipping his coat tails before sitting down to play an original composition, those skilled fingers dancing across the keys.

“Stan?”

He snapped out of it, giving his head a small shake. Since when was he so easily distracted? “Sorry, spaced out for a sec.”

“Take your time,” Xeno said, and Stanley knew he meant it.

He took a breath. “Lucas and I… we were a lot alike. That’s why we got along so well. We both came from a shitty home life, and took pride in our work. But he… took it further.” Stanley’s eyes darkened. “He once said that he had preferred Iraq over his life back home… considering his parents had to divorce or there would’ve been a murder, I believed him. That was understandable. In the Marines, you can fight back against somebody who’s after ya, and someone’s always got your back. I always had his back, too. But… something was off about him. I couldn’t put my finger on it for a while. Both our lives revolved around war, after all… but, for him, it seemed like that’s _all_ he had in his life. He had nothing else. I didn’t really get that, because I have you.”

He met Xeno’s eyes, and he saw his eyebrows raise, and a light kindle in his dark irises.

“Then, he got injured. Bad enough that he wouldn’t be able to serve anymore. He’d have to go home. I knew it would be hard for him, but I told him I’d support him however I could, that he wouldn’t be alone… I didn’t think he’d do what he did. Maybe… didn’t _want_ to think he’d do that, would be more accurate.” Stanley ran his free hand through his hair with a sigh.

“It’s difficult to predict what other people will do, when put under stressful circumstances,” Xeno said.

“He just didn’t see how he could go back and have a normal life… he was angry about it. I should’ve seen this coming…” Stanley rubbed at his forehead with his fingers.

“Don’t blame yourself,” Xeno said, “it’s not your fault. If anything, it’s the military’s. They should have provided counseling.”

“I don’t think it would’ve helped,” Stanley said. “And I don’t think there’s anything I could’ve really done to stop him… and that’s what gets me.”

“Stan…”

“The scariest thing is… that could’ve been me.”

Xeno nearly choked. “What?”

“I told you — we were similar, came from similar backgrounds. Threw ourselves into our work like it was all we had. Obsessed with war and what came next. If things were different… the same could’ve happened to me. This… woke me up, for sure.” Stanley shook his head.

“What do you mean?” Xeno asked, his tone cautious, wary.

“For a long time, I’ve just been living day-to-day, not giving much thought to the future. Or to having more in my life. I haven’t been paying enough attention to you, either.”

Xeno paused, blushing a little. “I knew the Marine Corps was important to you when we got together. I don’t mind you being busy with it, really,” he said, not meeting Stanley’s eyes.

Stanley gave a soft sigh. Xeno was a terrible liar.

“Lucas made me realize that I don’t want war to define my life forever. Someday, I’ll retire… maybe even quit.” He looked to Xeno, into his eyes. “What would you think of that? Would you… think less of me? Think I’m a coward?”

Xeno drew a soft gasp through his nose. “Never,” he breathed. Then he looked down, a thoughtful expression on his face. He looked away, with a distant look in his eyes that belies a foresight of a world that could possibly come to be. "It's the fervent wish of mankind that someday, war will no longer need to be waged. Well, at least in the near future, there will be less need for boots on the ground, thanks to drones and advanced missile technology. One way or another, war as we know it will come to an end." Xeno turned his gaze to Stanley. "So, in a way you'd be ahead of the curve. Elegant, no?"

Stanley let out a slanted smile. He knew Xeno would understand. “Yeah, when you put it that way…”

“Whatever you decide to do, I’ll support you, Stan. Heck, if you do retire from the Marines, I could put in a good word for you at my work. Imagine the two of us working together,” Xeno smiled, a dreamy look in his eyes. “It would be fantastic.”

“I dunno if NASA would need anyone with my skills, but I appreciate that,” Stanley smirked.

“Don’t even worry about that,” Xeno said, brushing away Stanley’s concerns. “You could be a guard, at the very least. My salary would be enough for the both of us to live comfortably.”

“Both of us, huh…?”

“Well… at that point, living together would just make sense,” Xeno tried to deflect, but the blush that rose to his cheeks made it evident that he did _not_ intend for that to slip out.

Stanley gave a little laugh. “Anyway. I’ve realized that what’s made me different from guys like Lucas, is that I have more to my life than war and guns and training. Someone who I’d have even if I didn’t have any of those things. A light that guides me out before the darkness gets to be too much…”

The blush on Xeno’s cheeks hadn’t left, but he smiled. “Your north star?”

Stanley chuckled. “Something like that. Someone who… I could redefine my life with.”

He had planned out what he was going to say, but Xeno’s own words were just too perfect.

He slips a small box out of his pocket. “Xeno,” he said, putting down his wine glass, and getting on one knee, opening the box. “Will you be the north star I follow, for the rest of my nights?”

He felt cheesy as _hell_ … but it felt so right, at the same time. His pounding heart was in his throat as he watched Xeno.

Xeno gasped, taking in the sight of Stanley on one knee, holding out a box with a shining ring inside it.

“Stan…!” He blindly set down his wine glass, nearly spilling its contents, as he stood up. His hands were at his mouth, his eyes welling up, before he spoke at last. “Of course I will-!”

Stanley stood up, outstretching his arms to embrace Xeno, who quickly closed the distance between them, kissing him as Stanley held him close. They kissed for a minute more, deeply drinking the moment in.

Xeno pulled back first. “This is a hell of a time to propose,” he laughed.

Stanley laughed too. “I know. I told myself I was going to propose to you as soon as I could. This just happened to be the next opportunity I had.”

Xeno kissed him again. “...You know I hate public proposals-”

He glanced around then. There was no one in their immediate vicinity.

“Did you…?”

Stanley smirked. “I reserved this whole restaurant, and told the wait staff to scram after we finished our dinner.”

_“Stan,”_ Xeno said lovingly, giving him another kiss. “You know me so well.”

He pulled back a little more. “Let me see the ring,” he said eagerly. “What’s it made of?”

Stanley obliged with a smile, bringing the ring box back in front of him and opening it again. “Tungsten and meteorite. The seller said it should glow under UV light. I didn’t test it though.”

Xeno lit up like a kid on Christmas morning, taking the ring and slipping it onto his finger; it fit perfectly. _“ Elegant!_ Oh if it’s the real article, which it looks to be, it surely will. It’s beautiful, Stan.” He examined the ring closely, his dark eyes shining in delight.

“Thanks, it took me a while to pick one out,” Stanley said, smiling proudly.

Xeno’s eyes met his then, his mouth curving in a slightly sheepish smile. “You’re not going to believe this.”

“What-”

Xeno handed the ring box back to Stanley, and rummaged through his own pockets… soon producing a ring box of his own.

Stanley’s jaw dropped.

Xeno opened it, revealing the dark-toned ring inside. “It’s tungsten too… and this little stripe inlay of crushed meteorite on the side symbolizes me,” he said, his sheepish smile growing.

Stanley chuckled. _Of course_ they were on the same wavelength with this, too. “How long have you had that?”

Xeno looked down. “Six months.”

_“Six months?!”_

“I couldn’t find the right moment or time!” Xeno exclaimed, as Stanley began to laugh again. “It-it's like a rocket launch, you know! Every condition has to be just right!”

Stanley was doubled over in laughter now. “Or, what, a whole crew of astronauts will be blown up?”

He was teasing, but he was relieved — Xeno wanted to marry him too. Just as much as he did. While he was still trying to make his mind up. While he was too focused on other things.

“You know what I mean!” Xeno huffed. “You being so distant lately didn’t help… I was starting to wonder if I made a mistake…”

Stanley’s laughter had eased up, but at Xeno’s words, his heart dropped. “I’m sorry,” he said, drawing close to him again, cradling his jawline in his hand, stroking his cheek with a thumb. “I won’t do that again, I promise. I’m not great at expressing my feelings… but I won’t shut you out anymore. That wasn’t right.”

Xeno smiled at Stanley. “I’ll hold you to that.”

Xeno met Stanley’s blue eyes, holding his gaze for longer than what would be interpreted as platonic; Stanley felt like the darkness of his eyes could swallow him whole — and he’d welcome it gladly.

They kiss again, it soon intensifying, their tongues venturing into one another’s mouths, before they remembered where they were.

“We should go,” Xeno said, wiping his mouth after pulling back abruptly.

“Yeah,” Stanley said with a small laugh.

“I’ll call the ride-share, you go thank the wait staff,” Xeno said before downing the last of the wine in his glass.

“Will do.”

Stanley found where the wait staff had hidden away to, told them the good news, and thanked them for their cooperation. When he got back to Xeno, he was already waiting by the door, the ride-share vehicle parked just outside.

They got into the backseat, and Xeno’s hand found Stanley’s, laying atop it and stroking it fondly. Stanley could feel the cold metal of the ring on his finger.

“Ah, let me try on mine, too,” Stanley said, realizing that he had forgotten to, in their rush to leave the restaurant.

Xeno discreetly slipped him the ring box, and Stanley put on the black tungsten ring. It fit perfectly. Turning his hand, he watched the thin stripe of crushed meteorite glint in the low light of the car and the street lights they passed.

His heart rate increased, the sight of the ring on his finger bringing forth an emotion he hadn’t quite expected. _This was real._ This was the proof of Xeno’s love for him. Firm and _real,_ right on his hand. He blinked back his sudden tears, and looked to Xeno, giving him a smile before grasping his hand.

They couldn’t get back to their motel soon enough; traffic was light, but Stanley needed Xeno _now,_ and he was certain Xeno felt the same way.

Finally reaching it, they set off toward their room as quickly as they could, locking their door and kicking off their shoes. Their lips met again soon after, giving heated, hurried kisses as they undressed one another, slipping off suit coats and loosening neckties. Stanley’s fingers fumbled at the buttons of Xeno’s vest in his haste; Xeno gave him another peck before reaching down to help him.

Soon they were down to just dress shirts and pants, and Xeno spread himself across the bed, beckoning.

Stanley didn’t hesitate, climbing over him to straddle his hips, catching his lips in his again. He ran a hand up Xeno’s chest, teasingly undoing each button of his shirt, one at a time. Xeno let out a needy moan, and hastened his movements, undoing the last buttons and slipping the shirt off Xeno’s arms.

Using his left hand this time, he gave a slow stroke up Xeno’s now-exposed skin, letting him feel the cold metal of his ring ghosting across it; he was rewarded by a small shiver, as he moved up to fondle one of his nipples. Xeno moaned again, arching his back and squirming.

Not wanting to be outdone, Xeno reached up to take off Stanley’s shirt, getting a few buttons undone before Stanley reached down to undo the rest, taking a moment to pull his shirt off in one smooth motion, tossing it aside with the rest of their clothing.

Xeno let out a fond sigh, running his hand over Stanley’s firm, well-defined chest and abs. Stanley smiled, and turned his attention back to Xeno’s body, kissing up his stomach and chest, giving a teasing lick and bite to his other nipple.

“Aah!” Xeno cried out. “Mm… Stan…” He gave a shallow buck of his hips, the evident bulge in his pants brushing against Stanley’s own. “Please…”

Stanley needed no further cue than that. He reached down to unbuckle Xeno’s belt, then his own, moving to slip Xeno’s pants and underwear off. Xeno let out a relieved sigh, his erect length freed at last.

Stanley took off his own pants and underwear then, freeing his own, larger length; he leaned back over Xeno, him gasping as their lengths brushed against each other.

Stanley smirked against Xeno’s lips, then reached down to wrap a hand around both their cocks, giving them a few lazy, teasing strokes, before gradually speeding up.

Xeno’s back arched, letting out a moan before muffling it with the back of his hand. “Stan…” he panted. “Please… I want… _you_ …”

Stanley gave a slanted smile, giving Xeno another kiss before shifting back, lifting and parting Xeno’s legs, placing kisses on his inner thighs as his fingers made their way to his entrance, circling it as Xeno gave a shiver.

“S-Stan…” Xeno let out. “You… forgot something…”

Stanley blinked blearily. “Huh?” His impaired brain processed this for a moment. “Oh.”

He cast his gaze around the room, searching, as Xeno gave a small chuckle. “You’re drunk.”

“Shush,” Stanley said with a laugh of his own, “you brought some, right?”

“It’s in the drawer,” Xeno replied.

“You always think of everything,” Stanley smiled, reaching over to the bedside table and pulling open the drawer, finding their bottle of lube that Xeno had definitely brought from home.

He put some on his fingers, and, repositioning himself, brought them back to Xeno’s entrance, entering him with two of them.

Scissoring and curling in him, they worked at Xeno’s inner walls, soon finding his sensitive spot, teasing it as they worked their way around.

“Ah!” Xeno cried out, giving a moan soon after. “Nn… please… _more!”_

Stanley introduced a third finger, leaving Xeno squirming beneath him as they moved in him.

“Stan,” he panted, looking up at him. “I’m ready… I need to feel you… _now_ …”

Stanley gave a sultry smirk. “You got it.”

He slicked his member in lube, it twitching in anticipation. He lined himself up, and with little hesitation, he began to enter Xeno.

Xeno moaned freely, trying and failing to muffle them with his hand. Stanley entered slowly, the pleasant tightness seeming to welcome him back home. Rooting himself completely, he halted, reaching a hand up to brush the loose strands of hair from Xeno’s face.

“Ready?”

Xeno stared up at him with a loving smile. “Yes,” he breathed.

Without further ado, Stanley began to move, hooking Xeno’s legs over his shoulders to get at the angle Xeno liked best as he thrust into him.

“A-ah-! Mmh-!” Xeno muffled his moans with his hand again.

“Hey, I want to hear you,” Stanley said.

“N-no,” Xeno said, his words punctuated by Stanley’s thrusts. “Our… colleagues… will… hear…”

“Oh~? You _don’t_ want them to know how good you’re being fucked right now…?” Stanley said with a wicked smirk. “Go on, let ‘em talk. They can’t do shit.”

Stanley picked up the pace, and Xeno quickly came undone.

“Aah! Staaan-!” he exclaimed, arching his back and clutching the sheets below him. Hearing a sound, he tilted his head upward. “Ah, the headboard-!”

“Dooon’t care,” Stanley said, continuing as his strong thrusts sent the headboard of the bed rhythmically banging against the wall.

“Stannn!! Aah-! More! Hurry!” Xeno gasped, his face turning deep red, knowing there was no turning back now.

“Nnn…” Stanley looked down at Xeno, who looked absolutely wrecked beneath him, his once-elegant hair now a mussed nest around his head. “You look so sexy right now,” he said in a low voice, caressing his cheek. “So hot. You feel so good.”

“Stan-!” Xeno whimpered, his eyes beginning to water. “I… love you… !”

Stanley replied with a kiss stolen from his lips, before he had to take a breath, throwing his head back.

“I’m… I’m close-!” Xeno panted, his hand wandering down to his cock. Stanley pushed it away, taking it in his own hand instead, pumping it as he continued pounding into him.

Xeno’s legs shook, and he threw his head back. “Aaaah-!”

Stanley both saw and felt Xeno’s orgasm, his pearly cum staining both their chests, and Xeno tightening around him, soon triggering Stanley’s own release, him bucking his hips a few more times before stopping, feeling how he filled Xeno as he collapsed atop him.

“You… forgot a condom too…” Xeno said with a breathy chuckle.

“Oh well,” Stanley said with a chuckle of his own. “I’m yours.”

He lifted his head, kissing Xeno in his hazy afterglow, feeling his heart pounding right next to his own.

Xeno reached up with both hands, cradling Stanley’s face when he pulled back. Stanley could feel his ring touch his cheek. “I love you so much.”

Stanley raised a hand to cover Xeno’s left, rubbing the ring there idly. “I love you, too,” he said in a whisper, throwing away his embarrassment at saying it aloud.

Their foreheads touched, as they shared a laugh.

Stanley pulled out, and tried his best to clean himself and Xeno up; when he was done, he lay down next to him, finding his hand and holding it.

“What made you decide you want to marry me?” Stanley asked.

Xeno sighed softly. “I thought about it one day, and… I realized there was no one I’d rather spend my life with than you. And when I thought about marrying you, I couldn’t get it out of my head… I’m still excited about it,” he smiled.

Stanley looked up at the ceiling. “I never thought about marrying anyone before… it’s not like I ever saw a _good_ marriage,” he quipped, thinking of his parents. “But, you’ve changed everything for me, ever since we met… I couldn’t see very far into my future, but you were _always_ thinking about the future, all the possibilities it had. You made me feel like… a future is possible. You still do. And I want to pursue it, _live_ it... with you,” he squeezed Xeno’s hand, looking down to meet his eyes. “I don’t want anything or anyone to get in the way of that.”

Xeno’s eyes softened. “Stan…” He squeezed back. “Me neither.”

Xeno leaned in, and they kissed, soft and slow, expressing what they couldn’t in words alone.

They parted, and Xeno reached out to Stanley’s face, pushing back his forelock and cradling his cheek in his palm, giving him a tender look; his eyes were glassy with unshed joyful tears.

Stanley smiled back at him. “I guess we’re gonna have to start the planning, huh?”

Xeno burst out in happy laughter. “Oh definitely. I’ve had some ideas and looked at a few things, but now I can start in earnest!” His eyes were aglow again, which made Stanley feel happy too.

He was prepared for the onslaught that would follow from Xeno after this — Pinterest, Instagram, Etsy, the barrage of products and inspiration and _“oh wouldn’t this be elegant, Stan?”_ s sent right to his phone. But, at the same time… he was looking forward to it. He knew that Xeno’s job wasn’t easy either sometimes — the bureaucracy, the politics, the ignorant public, plus the pressure he often felt to compromise his honest nature… it was crushing. At least planning for their wedding would provide him with a happy distraction on those harder days — another reason Stanley decided to propose.

Of course, Stanley would look at a few wedding-related things too, in his own spare time, to take his mind off of his own difficult days at work… truly, this was something the both of them needed.

“Should we tell anyone?” Xeno asked.

“Not yet,” Stanley answered. “Once this _tech expo_ is over, we’ll go from there.”

“Alright,” Xeno said, his voice starting to sound sleepy. He slid down to rest his head on Stanley’s chest. “I can’t wait to marry you.”

Stanley smiled down at Xeno, and placed a kiss on the top of his head. “Me too.”  
  


* * *

  
The next day, they showered and changed, placing their respective engagement rings in their breast pockets, close to their hearts, before they met that fateful gathering.

Then…

_Well, fuck,_ Stanley thought to himself. It was just him and his thoughts now, trapped, immobile in a prison of stone. _I guess that’s not gonna happen now._

_But, if we’re like those swallows… then everyone else is in stone, too._ Everyone’s _plans are cancelled now. So, it can’t be helped. No use getting angry about it. We’re all in the same boat._

_By the time we get out… there might not even_ be _weddings anymore. Oh well. As long as I can stay by his side, that’s enough for me._

_I’ll see you again, Xeno. I swear it._


	2. Chapter 2

"We should've just worn our rings. Everyone's reactions wouldn't matter by now."

Three-thousand-seven-hundred years later, Stanley and Xeno had emerged from the stone at last — and after the joy of their reunion and the bustle of their comrades breaking free from the stone thereafter, once they got a moment alone at last, watching the sun setting over the mountain peaks… they couldn’t help but lament over what had been lost; not least of which, both of their rings, along with the clothes they had worn, had vanished over the centuries.

"It's alright. We don’t know what would have become of our fingers if they had had metal rings on them upon petrification… we might have lost them," Xeno says, shaking his head. "The rings would have degraded regardless, if they were exposed to the elements. The reason that platinum ring was preserved was solely because Mr. Carlos kept it in his mouth, after all." Xeno pauses in thought. "I could reinvent a metal detector... but, by now they would likely be only metal fragments."

Stanley sighs. All that effort he put into picking it out... Xeno, too.

Xeno puts his hand on Stanley's shoulder. "We'll make new ones. They won't be the same, of course... but we'll make them ourselves. Or at least design them."

Stanley lays his hand over Xeno’s. “We’re here, together, after all this time… that’s all that matters.”

“There’s no one I’d rather start civilization over again with than you. How fortunate that we could be together that day. If you weren’t here…”

“Mm?”

Xeno draws a breath, and his voice is delicate. “I’d miss you terribly. Worry about you for the rest of my days.”

“I’d find you,” Stanley says. “I would’ve stayed alive, and I would’ve looked for you. Nothing would stop me from seeing you again.”

“It would be difficult to do that alone though,” Xeno chuckles. “But… thank you. I would take a bit longer, but… I would try to find you, too.”

Stanley chuckles too. “Why, though? I’m just a sniper.”

“Don’t sell yourself short! You’re _brilliant._ _And_ you’re my best friend.” Xeno hugs him, placing his chin on Stanley’s shoulder. “Aristotle once said a friend is a single soul dwelling in two bodies. I can’t very well go without the other half of my soul, can I?” Xeno plants a kiss on Stanley’s cheek.

Stanley’s heart skips a beat, feeling his face redden. “...When did you get so romantic?” he smirks.

“Since always. I just didn’t want to embarrass you.”

Stanley sighs and leans into Xeno’s embrace. “I didn’t think you would believe in such a thing as a soul.”

“Well, it’s merely a word for a theory, of something that science hasn’t figured out yet. Of why I’m myself, and you are you. Why do I see through my eyes, when I could have just as easily seen through yours, and vice versa? Consciousness, individuality, singularity…”

“You’re losing me.”

Xeno chuckles, the sound of it tickling Stanley’s ear. “Anyway, I see no contradiction in merely entertaining the theory of a soul. Something kept us going, kept us _ourselves,_ all these years, something that neither degraded nor expired. Was it simply Newton’s first law of physics at work, a body in motion tending to stay in motion? Or is it an undiscovered element of human beings, perhaps of all conscious animals?” Xeno sighs. “Ah, just one of the many mysteries I thought about while in the stone…”

“So… you’re saying that soulmates could be possible, too?” Stanley says then, processing Xeno’s words. He’d missed hearing Xeno’s rambling over the millennia too much to stop him.

“I wouldn’t go that far, but I wouldn’t rule it out, either,” Xeno says, then smiles. “Perhaps the elements from the stars that made us came from the same place.”

 _“We’re made of star stuff,”_ Stanley quoted, smiling back, his fond memories of the nights they’d spent watching _Cosmos_ together returning. “Maybe so.”

The sky had turned a deep orange, the light soon fading. Stanley lets out a yawn.

“I’m gonna take a nap. Today was busy as hell,” he says. Their first day in the stone world was indeed a busy one, but thanks to Xeno’s task delegating, a lot had been accomplished — they had sturdy shelter for them all to spend the night, plenty of safe food to eat, and some rudimentary weapons prepared in case a predator showed up. Not bad at all for starting from square one. “What are you gonna do?”

“I’m waiting for nightfall. It’s going to be a clear night, and I want to see how much the stars have changed.”

“I’ll check back with ya later, then. Be careful, alright? If you need me, yell.”

“I will,” Xeno replies, flashing Stanley a cheery smile, before turning his gaze to the skies.

A few hours later, feeling refreshed, Stanley emerges from his shelter and makes his way back to Xeno, grabbing a stone spear as he goes; the wilderness around them is still very much untamed, with untold numbers of wild and potentially dangerous animals dwelling within.

Stanley finds Xeno where he left him, watching the stars. He joins him silently, and observes him for a moment. As his eyes trace his features, the lines of his new scar, lit by unobscured starlight, he’s surprised at what he finds. He had expected to see Xeno’s eyes filled with excitement and wonder, and for him to notice Stanley’s presence and begin rambling on and on about the stars.

Instead, he sees a troubled look to his features, his brows knit and his eyes narrowed slightly, searching, analyzing, re-analyzing… thinking.

He hears Xeno sigh, and decides to speak up.

"Something on your mind?"

"Ah,” Xeno startles; the sight of Stanley then calms him instantly, him letting out a relieved breath. He turns back around, looking up. “The north star changed position. It doesn’t point due north anymore. Earth's axis must have shifted."

Stanley stares up at the star-blanketed sky, the Milky Way clearly visible. His eyes scan for Polaris, and soon find it; sure enough, it _had_ shifted a bit to the left. "Y' don't say."

"Every navigational technique will have to be recalibrated..." Xeno sighs. "So much has changed..."

Stanley gets the feeling that this is about more than a star. Since he emerged from the stone, Xeno had seemed different, somehow. From the things he said to the thoughts he entertained. It was only natural, Stanley supposed, from him spending so much time with his own thoughts. What kinds of things did he think about for all that time? Was he worried that he had changed too much?

Stanley embraces Xeno from behind. "Well... even if the north star has changed, I'll still follow it."

"But it won't be the _north_ star anymore... it'll lead you in a different direction now."

"Well... maybe that's the direction I ought to go."

Xeno places a hand atop Stanley's as it lay on his waist. "Stan..." He sighs softly, relaxing in Stanley’s hold. "I have plans. For us, this country, even the world... Will you listen?"

"Yeah. I will."  
  


* * *

  
“Alright, close your eyes.”

“This is silly,” Stanley says, but closes his eyes regardless. “I already know what it is.”

“But you haven’t _seen_ it yet,” Xeno says, leading him forward by his hand. “Okay, now… open your eyes.”

Stanley opens his eyes, and gasps. “Holy _shit!”_

He rushes up to the large rifle, grinning ear to ear as he looks it over. “This is incredible. You designed all this?”

“Yes, though Dr. Brody helped refine a few parts as it moved from concept to reality. Will it work for you?”

Stanley was peering through its scope. “Yeah. It will. Definitely.”

“Well, you should give it a test run first, at least,” Xeno says with a chuckle. “Everything’s been just conceptual until now.”

“And your analyses are always dead-on,” Stanley says, straightening to observe the sniper rifle in full. “I trust you.”

He hears a soft sigh from behind him. "I'm so sorry. I've gone and made war define your life again," Xeno says with a wistful smile.

"Huh?” Stanley turns, and sees a somber expression on Xeno’s face.

“You know. Making you a sniper again, putting you in charge of defending this country, taking orders from a leader… but,” Xeno sighs again, “we can’t assume peace will reign here forever, either.”

“It's alright,” Stanley shrugs. “It's different if _you're_ the commander-in-chief I'm serving."

"Ah-ah," Xeno says, waggling a finger, a smile finally emerging on his face. " _I'm_ the president, _you're_ the commander-in-chief. It makes the most sense. You have the most military experience of the both of us, _and_ you're my partner. It's settled."

"Separate jobs, huh?" Stanley smirks.

"As they should have been all along! I wouldn't have trusted _that_ loutish oaf with commanding a McDonald's!"

The two burst into laughter at that.

“Ah, I’m glad _he’s_ not coming back,” Stanley says. “His brain activity probably stopped immediately.”

“Indeed. Let’s hope the White House collapsed on him.”

“We could only be so lucky,” Stanley says, turning back to the sniper rifle. He looks back at Xeno with a wry grin. “Ready to shoot some shit?”

Xeno smiles back. “Whenever you are.”

They go to a makeshift shooting range, where Stanley shoots down targets at varying distances that Xeno had set up for him, all without error. 

Stanley pulls back from the scope with a satisfied grin. “I actually missed this.” He turns to Xeno. “Thank you, really. It’s perfect.”

“Happy to hear it,” Xeno says, then walks back up to him. “I have one more surprise for you today.”

“What is this, my birthday?” Stanley smirks, then pauses. “...Wait, is it?”

Xeno gives a small smile and a knowing nod.

“Tch,” Stanley says, looking down with a smile of his own, feeling a blush emerge on his face. “You remembered… after all this time…”

“I may be a day or two off, but I’m certain I’m close to it, at least,” Xeno says.

“I’ll take your word for it,” Stanley replies. Before this stone world, Xeno often remembered Stanley’s birthday even when he himself forgot about it. “So, what’s the surprise?”

Xeno gestures for Stanley to follow him back to their castle; he complies at an easy pace. “Well, as of late we’ve all been working on processing the corn we’ve been growing, right?”

“Yeah. It’s all been a little over my head, so I’ve left you all to it.”

“I know,” Xeno nods. “The others have been of great assistance, Dr. Brody and Ms. Maya especially. And now we have a wet-milling process that rivals what once existed back in our time. We’ll be able to make use of just about every part of the bushels of corn we grow.”

“That’s great,” Stanley says. “I wish Maya would stop singing to the corn, though.”

Xeno’s eyelid twitches. “I’d tell her not to, but she thinks it helps, and I can’t refute her. The extra carbon dioxide and air vibrations likely have a non-zero effect on the plants, at least.” He sighs. “Anyway, thanks to our progress, we’ve broken down our corn into several different co-products. One of which is produced in a smaller amount compared to the others… but I think we’ll make good use of it.”

He slips a hand into his pocket and pulls out a bottle with a translucent, viscous liquid inside, presenting it to Stanley.

Stanley peers at it. “Is that… oil?”

“Yes. Corn oil is quite useful, especially for cooking, but it is also safe for… bodily use.”

Stanley’s eyebrows raise. “ _Oh shit._ Seriously?” A grin spreads on his face now. The two certainly hadn’t been celebate since breaking free from the stone, but without proper lubricant, and bodies that had been essentially factory-reset, anything penetrative was... a _challenge,_ to say the least. Saliva and pre-cum could only carry them so far, it turned out. Finding plants that would serve as body-safe substitutes had been a fruitless endeavor as well.

They were nearly at the castle now. “Yes,” Xeno smiles. “I’ve been looking forward to this day for more reasons than one, Stan.”

“Heh. So have I.” They reached the threshold. “Is there anyone around?”

“Not in our immediate vicinity, no. We should remain undisturbed for quite a while,” Xeno says, giving Stanley a suggestive look.

Stanley smirks back. “Say no more.”

They enter the large doors, and Stanley sweeps Xeno off his feet, carrying him to their room in his arms. Kicking the door shut behind them, Stanley places Xeno on the bed.

“Take off those dirty clothes first,” Xeno says teasingly.

“Yes, Mr. President,” Stanley quips, starting to undress, tossing his clothes to the floor.

“No need to be so formal,” Xeno says, pulling off his gloves with his teeth, slowly, as he spread himself across the bed, parting his legs in blatant invitation. “It’s just us.”

Stanley didn’t hesitate, climbing onto the bed and hovering over Xeno. “Is unwrapping _you_ part of my birthday present?” he smirks, before slipping off his coat, pulling off his tie, and unbuttoning his shirt, teasingly slow.

“It can be,” Xeno replies, before giving a soft gasp as Stanley runs his calloused hands across Xeno’s now-bare chest, brushing against and lightly pinching one of his nipples, then the other, making them perk up as he swept in for a kiss, swallowing Xeno’s pleasured moan.

Xeno pulls away with a gasp. “Stan…” He gives a slow buck of his hips, wordlessly pleading to continue.

Stanley needs no further instruction, sliding down to unbuckle and pull down Xeno’s pants, removing his shoes as an afterthought. He raises his brows. “Going commando? This _is_ a surprise,” he grins.

Xeno spreads his legs further, showing off his exposed erection. “I wouldn’t risk unnecessarily dirtying my clothes for just anyone,” he smiles back.

Stanley’s helpless to resist the temptation; he returns, giving a slow lick up Xeno’s length, causing him to shudder.

“Stan, ah-!” Xeno throws his head back, feeling Stanley taking his cock into his mouth, bobbing his head and swirling his tongue around the tip.

Xeno struggles to speak. “Nn, Stan! The… oil-!” 

Stanley pulls off of him with a lewd _pop._ “You’re ready?”

“Mm,” Xeno nods.

Stanley grabs the bottle of oil that Xeno hands to him, and drizzles some on his fingers. It wasn’t the same as the lube back in the old world, of course… but it would have to do.

“Here’s goes nothin’,” he mutters to himself, before spreading Xeno’s legs apart, and entering him with a finger.

“Ahh-!” Xeno lets out. “Yes, that’s much better- Mm!”

Stanley gives a satisfied smile, as he works in another finger, moving them around inside Xeno, making sure he’s both opened up and well-coated. He introduces a third, which causes Xeno to squirm and moan under him. The walls of their castle were naturally soundproof, so Xeno could be as loud as he wanted during sex — which pleased Stanley greatly.

“Mm… Stan… please… I’m ready…”

Stanley pulls out his fingers, Xeno letting out a small whimper as he did so. He looks up at Xeno’s face, flushed red already, and leans up to kiss him. “You’re so cute,” he says in a low voice.

“Nn…” Xeno kisses him back with a needy moan.

Stanley leans back then, taking more of the oil and spreading it liberally over his length. He tries to ignore how it smelled like cooking oil, as he lines himself up to Xeno’s entrance. He lifts up Xeno’s legs, then presses in, slowly. His entry is a lot easier now, the oil doing its job, accompanied by Xeno’s little utterances of “Yes, yes”.

Once buried in him to the hilt, Stanley lets out a breath, just feeling Xeno around him for a moment. He kisses one of Xeno’s thighs, then moves to hook his ankles behind his back, Xeno complying easily.

He starts to move, and Xeno doesn’t hold back, letting out every moan that emerged from his throat, calling Stanley’s name and pleading for more and more.

Stanley gives a satisfied smirk — the oil _did_ work a lot better than what they had tried before this, him now being able to keep up a brisk pace, enjoying the results of that displayed by the man beneath him.

“Staaanleeey…!” Xeno whines, hitting his climax _far_ sooner than Stanley had anticipated. He groans, feeling Xeno tightening around him, and his orgasm hits moments after.

They’re both left panting; wanting to feel his partner in a different way now, Stanley pulls out, clutching Xeno to his chest as he collapses onto the bed.

“ _Someone_ was eager,” he smirks playfully, as they lay side-by-side.

Xeno blushes. “It felt amazing, Stan… just like it used to.”

“Yep. You sure made some good lube. What _can’t_ you do?”

“You flatter me.” Xeno kisses him, then lets out a soft sigh. “We’ll be able to do this much more often now… ah, I missed it so.”

“Me too.”

“Mm.” Xeno nestles his head in the crook of Stanley’s neck. “Is this what it’s like, having a partner? Finding new ways to remain close to one another, to show our love? Is this… what marriage would be like?”

Stanley’s throat unexpectedly tightens. “I suppose so.”

“Ah… if only I’d proposed to you sooner. Then perhaps we could have wed before all this happened…”

Stanley rubs Xeno’s back. "It’s alright. We’re together now, just the same. I mean, it's not like we can get married _now_..."

Xeno thinks for a moment, then leans back to give him a quizzical look. "...Why not?"

Stanley's mouth moves wordlessly for a moment. "Uh. I mean... who would officiate it? Not that there's anything _official_ anymore..."

"I could ask around," Xeno says simply with a little smile.

"I..." Stanley sighs. "I mean... _marriage_ doesn't exist anymore."

"But it _does,"_ Xeno says, touching Stanley's chest. "Because we remember it. And through us, the ones who have survived, mankind's history and traditions can live on."

Xeno's touch, Xeno's stare, and Xeno's words were making Stanley's chest feel molten and warm. But the gears in his mind kept turning.

"Right... but, we don't really _need_ that. We know we love each other. We don't need a ceremony to prove that. We wouldn't even get a piece of paper in the end..."

Xeno smiles, giving a tap to the tip of Stanley's nose. "You underestimate the power of a ceremony. We're making memories in this new world. Won't you make one with me?"

Stanley sighs, taking in the sight of Xeno’s happy face, the new light in his dark eyes. He couldn’t say no to that. “Well when you put it that way…”

He leans in, and they both melt into a tender kiss.  
  


* * *

  
For thousands of years, Stanley had been resigned to the fact that their wedding probably wouldn’t happen, that even if they were to break free of the stone one day, holding a wedding would be the furthest thing from anyone’s minds, there being far more important matters at hand first.

But right before his eyes, he’s being proven wrong, every day.

For it was a lot more possible than Stanley had assumed — it had been well over a year since they had broken out of the stone; their cattle herds and corn fields had been established, their castle stronghold was complete, and their Haber-Bosch plant finished. All that was left was to innovate, reinvent, and build up their defenses, in the event of a future invasion.

“Invasion? How likely do you think that is?” Stanley had asked then, out of curiosity.

“It’s more than a mere non-zero chance, I’m certain,” Xeno had answered. “If we broke out on our own, with some assistance from nitric acid, then out of the seven billion people that were on this planet at one time, chances are that more people than us are up and walking around right at this moment.”

“Wouldn’t they just stay in place, though? Travel is risky.”

“They would, for a time. But that time would come to an end, one way or another. It’s one of mankind’s most natural, innate inclinations, after all — to explore,” Xeno said with a fond smile. “To go beyond our boundaries, to sail uncharted waters, find new territories, even go past the bounds of our planet…” There was a light in Xeno’s eyes, as he smiled. “Yes, we will have visitors someday. It’s just a matter of _when._ And when that day comes, we will have to demonstrate our might, as well. Any nation that would successfully reach our shores would have to have some grasp on scientific concepts. At that point, it would be a matter of whose scientific prowess wins out in the end, and the party that comes up short, has to join the ranks of the victor. The nation that is to rule this new world has to have the finest scientific knowledge and skill… and we would hardly be worthy of ruling if we do not win the battles we’ll face. And I believe we _will_ win.”

“We will. Definitely.”

Stanley had complete faith in Xeno’s scientific skill, it having brought them this far already. But now he has to scold himself for not believing that Xeno could make a wedding happen in this stone world as well.

Stanley admits right away that he knew very little about wedding planning — that even back in the modern world, he would have left most of it to Xeno. Both because he knew that Xeno loved making elegant presentations, and because he didn’t have much confidence in his own, well, _feminine_ skills. He most certainly would’ve done research on the internet about this kind of thing before even trying to assist him. But now, in a stone world, he was totally lost.

Xeno doesn’t mind in the slightest, being more than happy to take the lead, and Stanley being more than willing to be led around by him wherever he wishes. Xeno does in fact find someone among their group to officiate a wedding — Max had taken an ordination exam online in order to officiate a friend’s wedding. He wasn’t very confident in his ability to remember how to do it, but Xeno insists that it’s more than enough.

The next few weeks are a flurry of preparations — clearing a location near the castle that wasn’t too far out in the open, but still had enough space for their entire group; building the furniture that would be needed; figuring out and preparing the food that would be served; and making the clothes that would be worn by them both.

One such day, Xeno calls him to the castle, and Stanley finds that the women in their group are already there, waiting.

“Stan! It’s time!” Xeno announces.

“For… what?”

“For our fitting, of course! I’ve taken the liberty of designing attire for the both of us, but of course a proper fit will need to be assured beforehand!”

“Uh huh,” Stanley said, taking a drag from his cigarette. “And _how_ will we do that?”

“In separate rooms, of course!” Xeno grins. He turns to one of the women then. “Ms. Charlotte? Would you take Stanley into that room and give me a report afterward on the fit?”

Charlotte salutes. “Yes, sir!” 

“Here’s some measuring tape,” Xeno says, smiling down at her, handing her the tape as she walked by him toward Stanley.

“This way, Captain,” Charlotte says, directing Stanley to a side room.

Xeno turns to another of their group. “Ms. Luna! Your assistance, please?”

Luna slumps slightly. “Why _me? You_ made all these, shouldn’t you have it covered?”

“I need a woman’s touch,” Xeno winks. “Come, now.”

Luna sighs, and follows reluctantly.

The two meet in Xeno’s room, and Xeno turns to his closet and opens it with a flourish. “I hope you’re good with a needle and thread, because I need your assistance in putting the finishing touches on this,” he says, pulling out a tuxedo. “Do keep this between us until after the ceremony, hm?”

Luna blinks at the tuxedo in surprise. “Wait, has Stanley seen this?”

“He won’t, until the ceremony,” Xeno says with a confident smile.

“What, are you the bride in this relationship?” Luna teases.

“As we are both men, I’d prefer not to use such gendered terms,” Xeno sniffs. “...But, I _am_ the more romantic one, so I suppose it’s fitting.” He hands her the tuxedo. “My fingers aren’t a suitable size for this kind of detail-work.”

“Ah… Mm,” Luna says, taking it and rustling through Xeno’s sewing supplies. “Stanley’s more of a practical guy, huh?”

“Indeed. But he indulges me, which is all I can ask for,” Xeno smiles. “Though I like to think my ways are rubbing off on him.”

“You… sure are doing most of the work on this,” Luna observes, before slipping and poking herself with a needle. “Ow.”

“And I’m happy to do it! I dreamed of this back in the old world, and I’m going to do my best to recreate my vision in this new world.”

“...You’re sure he’s still interested in marrying you?”

Xeno frowns. “Of course he is! He just has some reservations, that’s all.”

“Like what?”

“Whether we could do it without putting our safety at risk — I assured him we could, and the risk is very low regardless; whether our efforts could be better put elsewhere — I told him that most of our biggest projects are complete, so there’s more than enough spare manpower to make this happen. And…”

“And?”

Xeno sighs. “He’s wondered if we even _have_ to get married at all. Because marriage doesn’t exist anymore, and we’ll be with each other regardless…” Xeno shakes his head. “What do you think, Ms. Luna?”

“Well…” Luna thinks, choosing her words carefully, “if it’s important to you, he should respect that.”

“And he does! He hasn’t made fun of it or anything. I told him I’d show him that a wedding is more than all the old customs and legal proceedings from the past, and he agreed to it.”

“Alright,” Luna nods. “I just hope he appreciates all the effort you’re putting in.”

“I think… in the end he will. For sure,” Xeno smiles.

“Good. The last thing we need is our president and commander-in-chief having a falling-out,” Luna says with a little laugh.

Meanwhile, Stanley is standing still as Charlotte diligently takes his measurements, feeling awkward. The tuxedo Xeno had made him… is beautiful. Black with white stripe accents on the pockets, and a swirling black and white scroll design on the lapels. The cut of it perfectly accentuates his fit figure, and as he looks himself over in the mirror that Charlotte had brought in, the reality was sinking in. This wedding, _their_ wedding… was happening.

Suddenly his heart’s racing, and he needs to sit down to take a breath.

“Captain? Are you alright?”

“Yeah…” He lets out a shuddering sigh. “This is just… happening so fast… I didn’t think it could happen _at all,_ but now…”

“I’ve never seen you so nervous, sir,” Charlotte says, sounding nervous herself, having always had confidence in her near-unshakable Captain. “A wedding is nothing to be afraid of… it’s a happy occasion. And marriage between two people who love each other is a good thing regardless, right…?”

Stanley gives a mirthless laugh. “I’m not even sure what marriage _is_ …”

“C-Captain, forgive me for asking, but… why did you ask him to marry you in the first place?”

Stanley sighs, collecting his memories from thousands of years past. He doesn’t meet Charlotte’s eyes as he answers.

“Because… I didn’t want to lose sight of what was important to me. I wanted to make him happy. And… I wanted to make a new future, with him… If I’d known what was going to happen…” He shakes his head, unable to finish his sentence. Would he have still proposed? _Probably,_ he decides. “I thought… we could define marriage for ourselves, along the way. That we’d figure it out one way or another.”

“Th-then… couldn’t you do that now?”

Stanley blinks. “Huh… you’re right. I guess it’s not so different after all…” he scratches his neck. “Still feels weird, though.”

 _“ Everything_ feels weird, sir,” Charlotte replies. “Having to start from nothing like we have… To be honest, I had my doubts at first, but Dr. Xeno has proven to be a wise and capable leader. He’s made life better for all of us. And you and him, together… it’s not weird at all. You understand him better than most of us do,” she laughs a little. “So, you two getting married… might be the most normal thing that’s happened yet.”

“Yeah…” Stanley lets out a relieved sigh, feeling calmer. “Thanks. I needed that.”

“Of course, Captain,” Charlotte replies, showing a relieved smile of her own.

Seemingly satisfied with the results, Xeno shoos Stanley away again, but not before giving him a certain task:

“...Vows?”

“Yes,” Xeno says, pencil and paper in hand, “we’ll have to write some of our own. Unless you have the standard ones memorized?”

“Uh… I remember them vaguely…” _Something with ‘dearly beloved’ and ‘’til death do us part, right?_ “They’re kinda mushy…” Stanley shrugs. “But, I’m not much of a writer...”

“Not to worry, I won’t pressure you. You can say whatever you want. If you want to draft something though, here,” he hands Stanley the pencil and paper. “Freshly made,” Xeno grins.

Stanley grins back, taking them. “Thanks.”

Just as he thought, though, when he got a moment alone, Stanley just couldn’t put what he felt into words. _It all sounds stupid, cheesy, or both… and saying it in front of my soldiers, and everyone else? Ugh…_

Stanley decides not to worry about it, like Xeno said, and hopes that the words would come to him in the moment.

That moment comes sooner than he thought it would — the next clear day, their wedding is set to begin.

He’s roused awake by Charlotte, who’s even more excited than Stanley had expected, already dressed up and even wearing some makeup, accentuating her full lips and soft features. She chats away as Stanley eats his breakfast, giving him his tux and letting him know how hard Xeno’s been working at preparing the ceremony, already having been awake for three hours.

“With all due respect, Captain, I hope you’re as serious about this as he is. If I were in your shoes, I’d hate to disappoint him.”

“Right…” Stanley says, and suddenly feels bad about leaving so much of this to Xeno, even though he seemed fine with it.

From then on, he decides to do his damnedest to give this his all, even if he still had his doubts over how necessary a ceremony like this was.

When he sees the wedding venue at last… his jaw drops.

He had figured that having this wedding take place during the beginning of summer was more favorable for a lot of reasons, but now those reasons are laid out before him — the weather was pleasantly warm, but not yet sweltering, and flowers were _everywhere,_ adorning the seating, the altar, and the driftwood arch that stood over it, them having been gathered from wild-growing fields.

There lay a woven carpet before him, off-white, and the fabrics seemed to correspond to a theme of blacks, whites, dark blues and steely grays, which made the colorful wildflowers jump out all the more.

Wooden chairs lay in a line at both sides of the aisle, though Stanley saw little need for that — no need to divide by whose family was whose, after all. Just as he wondered about music, he hears the sound of… flutes? He turns, and sees a small band, with three members playing flutes, and one playing… rocks?

“It’s a lithophone,” Charlotte says, and Stanley almost jumps. She’s at his side, a blush in her cheeks that didn’t seem to be from makeup. “It’s made from the local rocks. It’s kind of like a xylophone or marimba… that’s how Xeno explained it, anyway.”

“Huh…” he looks down at her. “Are you supposed to be my best man or something? Oh, that’s right, I forgot to pick someone…” he says, rubbing his neck sheepishly. He wasn’t sure who he would have picked, in all honesty; he didn’t like to play favorites among his men.

“I have no problem filling that role, sir,” Charlotte says, her blush deepening despite her steady words, “though I ask that you not call me a bridesmaid.”

“Hmm… best lieutenant, then?”

Charlotte swallows and nods. “...That will do.”

He walks down the aisle with her, to a facsimile version of a wedding hymn being played by the makeshift band. They reach the end, standing just underneath the arch, and Charlotte stands off to his side. Stanley nods to Max, who’s wearing a tuxedo of his own and looking utterly nerve-wracked.

“Can you handle this?” he asks Max out of curiosity, and to kill some time.

“I-I recalled and rewrote what is to be said as best as I could… I had to improvise a good deal, though…” he says, his spectacled eyes skimming over the paper he held in his hand.

“It’s alright. Reinvention is what we’re all about here, right? It’s been three thousand years, we can change things up.”

Max lets out a little relieved sigh. “If you say so.”

Stanley waits, listening to the odd music and fidgeting slightly. Normally, waiting is no problem for a sniper like himself, but on a day like this, waiting for the man that would soon be his _husband_ … 

His thoughts are interrupted, and immediately grind to a halt.

The makeshift orchestra’s music swells, as Xeno appears at the end of the aisle. Flanked by Brody, his apparent best man, and holding a single white rose, Xeno walks measuredly down the aisle, to the pace of the music. Stanley can’t take his eyes off him, everything else seeming to melt away.

Xeno’s tux… is _stunning._ White with black accents, the opposite of Stanley’s, but with a bold, elaborate addition: a silvery beaded and embroidered floral and vine pattern, draped across the right shoulder and left breast. Some of it seemed to catch the light. _Are those… sequins?_

Stanley knew that Xeno possessed some latent fashion design talent, but this was on another level. He understood then why Xeno had waited until today to show it to him.

Xeno strides to the altar, handing the rose to Brody as he steps aside. He straightens his white bow tie and meets Stanley’s eyes with a prideful smile. Stanley smiles back.

“You look amazing.”

“So do you,” Xeno says, admiring Stanley’s tuxedo.

Stanley grins easily, though his heart’s pounding at his ribs as he takes in this moment. _This is it. This is really happening._

Max clears his throat. “I-if we’re ready, may I begin the ceremony?”

Xeno’s gaze doesn’t leave Stanley. “Certainly.”

“Yeah,” Stanley breathes.

Max straightens. “Ahem! Ah… friends, associates, comrades, we’re gathered here today to witness and affirm the union of this couple, in the bond of marriage. Stanley Snyder, and Dr. Xeno Houston Wingfield. For the sake of simplicity, they have opted not to take the name of the other, so no need to memorize a new name!” Max chuckles, and a light smattering of laughter can be heard from those gathered.

“Though everything from the world we once knew has faded away, today we’re resurrecting one of humanity’s oldest traditions, because even though everything else has perished, our memories haven’t; and why not bring back the best things?” Max smiles, and his gaze drifts to Luna, seated nearby and not seeming moved by his words.

Xeno subtly clears his throat, and Max’s attention returns. “Ah, so, in the spirit of this occasion, there will be an exchange of vows. Dr. Xeno will go first,” he says, nodding in Xeno’s direction.

Stanley lets out a quiet sigh of relief. He didn’t know what he would have done if he went first.

Xeno’s smile turns soft, and he reaches out to hold Stanley’s hands.

“Stan… I feel like the luckiest man in the world, that I was able to reemerge in this world of stone with you by my side. I’ve never forgotten how you protected me in those last moments, futile as it may have been. Many times, while in that stone, when I was about to lose control of my thoughts… I imagined you standing over me, protecting me always… and I’d feel calm again. You’ve been my rock, figuratively and quite literally,” he chuckles. “You’re not just my love, but my best friend as well. You know me like no one else does, and I trust you with my life, as you trust me with yours.”

Stanley nods in affirmation.

Xeno smiles in response. “Today, I trust you with not only my life, but my heart and soul as well. Those deepest, hidden, tender parts of myself, are yours now as well. We were close before, but now,” he squeezes Stanley’s hands, his voice beginning to waver, “we will be as one. Two souls united. Anything you wish for, I will grant you. And I’ll do my best to be patient with you, explaining things so you won’t get lost. Your worries and concerns are mine— so please, don’t feel the need to hide anything from me anymore,” Xeno’s thumbs rub at the tops of Stanley’s hands. “I promise you, I’ll carve a future for us out of this stone. Believe in me, as I’ve always believed in you. I’ll never leave you behind— we’ll do this together. This is my solemn vow to you, my partner, my beauty, the other half of my soul.”

Max gives him a pleased smile, while Stanley’s left breathless.

“Beautiful,” Max says. “Now, Stanley?”

Stanley’s mouth moves wordlessly for a moment, before letting out a sigh. “I can’t follow _that_ …” 

Xeno gives a laugh, and a few of the others gathered laugh as well. He leans over to whisper to Stanley’s ear. “It’s alright. There’s no rush. Just say what’s in your heart.”

He leans back, and Stanley swallows down the urge to be a smartass and say ‘blood’. No, he knows what Xeno means; he recalls the advice that Charlotte gave him, after Xeno had given him the task of coming up with his own vows:

 _“Well… if you’re feeling stuck, just think about how you feel about him, how he makes_ you _feel, and try to put that into words. And make promises you can keep. That’s what vows are for, right?”_

Stanley takes a deep breath and lets it out, steadying his pounding heart. His eyes trace the embellishments on Xeno’s tux.

“Xeno… since I met you, my life’s never been the same. I’ve never met anyone like you. You were weird as _hell_ as a kid… but that didn’t keep me away. You were always watching the stars... but I was always watching you. I loved you before I even realized it. I loved your honesty, how unafraid you were to be yourself. I learned I could trust you, with anything… especially after we got arrested as kids,” he chuckles. “You could’ve turned tail and ran, put all the blame on me. But you didn’t. You stayed by my side no matter what. That’s when I realized how different you were… I think that’s when I fell in love with you, too.”

Stanley smiles softly. “Love… it still sounds weird when I say it. All these _soft_ and _tender_ feelings… I never thought I’d feel them for anyone. I never thought I’d let anyone in like that… but you changed everything for me. I don’t know where I’d be without you. I don’t know if I’d even _be_ here…”

Stanley swallows, his throat suddenly feeling tight. He looks up, into Xeno’s eyes. “I don’t know what star stuff made us, where it landed or where it went… but, I’m glad it made you.”

The gathered crowd falls silent, save for a small “oh my _god”_ that seems to come from Luna’s direction.

Xeno’s eyes are glossy, holding his gaze as the corners of his mouth twitch upward.

Stanley squeezes his hands firmly. “I’ll protect you, always. I’d cross seas and skies for you. I’ll make up for what you lack, just as you’ve always done for me. And I’ll try not to complain when you’re overly helpful, even when I don’t need it,” he says with a crooked smile. “Coincidence, or fate… we were brought together that day, thousands of years ago. I’ve been by your side ever since. But now… I pledge myself to you. I don’t choose to stay with you because I have to, but because I _want_ to.” He leans in closer. “Xeno… my heart, my _soul_ — if there is such a thing... are yours. I know they’ll be safe in your hands.”

 _“Stan,”_ Xeno says, his eyes welling. He holds Stanley’s jawline in his hands, and starts to close in to meet his lips.

“N-not _yet!”_ Max interrupts, and the crowd laughs.

Xeno pulls back, and his and Stanley’s foreheads touch as they share a private laugh of their own.

“N-now there will be an exchange of rings! These two have created a unique pair, of which the other will see for the first time today!” Max rummages through his pockets and pulls out two wooden boxes. “I’ll be your ringbearer,” he smiles, handing them each a box, one white and one black.

“Do we open these at the same time, or…?” Stanley asks.

“If you want!” Max says cheerfully.

“A count of three, then,” Xeno says. “One, two… three!”

They both open the boxes at the same time, and while Stanley stares wide-eyed at his ring, Xeno lets out a gasp.

“Is this… benitoite?!”

“It is,” Stanley says with a confident grin. “California’s state gem, first discovered in the county where we were turned to stone.”

Xeno’s almost stammering. “B-but it’s exceedingly rare! However did you find this?”

“My team went back to that area to mine for other stuff, but we stumbled upon a rock of that. We’re lucky a geologist came to the tech expo too,” he smirked. “We were talking about rings at the time, and when I found out what that was, I had to get some of it for myself. Brody helped put it all together.”

Xeno’s staring down at the ring of silvery metal, with the violetish-blue stone set in the center of it, completely enamored. “It matches your eyes…”

“It’s a rarity. Like you.”

Xeno lets out a laugh, as he brushes away his joyful tears. “Now I feel bad that I just put clear quartz in yours… I _wanted_ to use a diamond, but I never found any with the right clarity, and we simply don’t have the means to synthesize diamonds yet-”

“Don’t worry about it,” Stanley says, admiring how the large, faceted inset stone caught and reflected the light. “I can’t tell the difference, anyway. It looks great, really. Looks like it’ll hold up, too.”

Xeno smiles. “Yes, I designed it with durability in mind. The metal is solid, and the stone won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. It should fit easily under your glove, as well.”

“Ahem!” Max interrupts, “I remember that the rings are part of the ceremony. You know, ‘With this ring’...?”

“Ah, right,” Xeno chuckles. He outstretches his hand, and Stanley places his ring in it, and takes the ring he had made for Xeno. Xeno takes Stanley’s left hand and raises it.

“With this ring, I thee wed,” he says, slipping the ring onto Stanley’s ring finger; it’s a perfect fit.

Stanley gazed down at the ring on his finger for a moment, before taking Xeno’s hand. “With this ring… I thee wed.”

He slips the ring onto Xeno’s finger, and he isn’t sure whether it’s the weight of the moment, or the sight of the ring he had made on his partner’s finger that makes his heart skip a beat.

_Is it… really this simple?_

Max straightens as though in reply to his thought. “With the power invested in me, from… thousands of years ago… I pronounce you partners for life!”

_Instead of ‘husband and wife’... That’s…_

Stanley smiles, and feels his eyes brim with tears — his first impulse is to blink them away, long-ago memories echoing in his mind: _Boys don't cry. They'll blur your sight._

Xeno smiles, and gently swipes away Stanley's tears with his thumbs. "You don't have to blink those away for me."

He leans in, Stanley closes the distance, and they tenderly kiss for the first time, as husbands.

“Oh, I forgot to say you could kiss now… well, there you go,” Max chuckles.

Stanley hears a few smattering claps, that soon build into a rousing applause. He and Xeno part, and look out to their friends and comrades, united in acknowledging and commending their union.

Stanley looks out at the scene laid out before them, as he holds Xeno’s hand tight, and realizes something.

This is a whole new world. One where they can bring back whatever they want from the past... or leave it behind. In this world, it didn't matter that he was marrying a man. Homophobia could simply be left behind, now irrelevant in a place whose leaders are two married men. 

Better yet, in this world, there would be no more endless, pointless wars for profit. In this world, there were no political parties, nor any politics at all. This world was _theirs._ _So what if it's technically a dictatorship?_ Stanley thinks. _This is America. We'll do it better than anyone else ever has._

Caught up in the moment, Stanley raises their joined hands, as the applause swells, and the band begins to play again.

“Ah, hold it right there!” Carlos calls, and leaps to the front of the altar, an odd-looking box in his hand.

“What-”

“Hold still, Stanley,” Xeno says calmly. “It’ll blur.”

“Huh?”

He stares at the box… that’s being held a _lot_ like a camera.

“Okay… got it!”

“Thank you, Mr. Carlos!” Xeno calls, and Carlos gives a playful salute.

“You didn’t…” Stanley says, staring in disbelief.

“It’s a daguerreotype camera. Surprisingly simple to put together, once all the needed materials have been obtained,” Xeno says simply.

“You’re… _incredible,”_ Stanley says, before kissing him again.

They head to their reception, the band moving its instruments to another area, where it joined a set of drums in preparation to play more upbeat music. Xeno takes a moment to toss his white rose to the attendees, it being caught by Carlos… who promptly gets into a brawl with Max for possession of it, Luna shaking her head at the scene and walking away.

Stanley and Xeno move to the dance floor that had been made, and slow dance together to the music.

“You were right,” Stanley says to Xeno as they dance. “That ceremony… I’ll never forget it. Everything feels like it means… _more_ somehow.” The warm happiness the ceremony had sparked in him hasn’t left, him still riding that joyous high.

“See? I told you this would be worth it, in the end,” Xeno says with a smile. “Who needs a piece of irrelevant paper when we have all this elegance, all these lovely memories we’ll treasure for the rest of our lives?”

“Amen to that,” Stanley says, resting his chin on Xeno’s shoulder as they danced closer together. “This just might be even better than a wedding we could’ve had back then.”

He can almost hear the smile in Xeno’s voice as he replies. “So, no regrets?”

“None at all. This wedding is so… _us._ Past me was so damn smart for proposing to you.”

Xeno laughs, and the sound is like music to Stanley’s ears.

Unlike the voice of the singer who gets on stage soon after.

As Maya begins to sing a familiar tune, semi out-of-tune, Stanley cringes. “This is awful.”

“I know,” Xeno says with a resigned sigh. “But she had the most songs memorized, and is the closest we have to a singer here. It couldn’t be helped.”

“Well… she’s better than usual, at least,” Stanley admits.

“We could always ditch the party early, you know,” Xeno says with a wink. “Get our… _consummation_ underway…”

Stanley smirks at him, giving a wink of his own. “Sounds like a plan.”

They share another kiss, and Stanley doesn’t think he could be any happier if he tried.

He had followed his north star, his Polaris, all this time; and now, he had found his home, in him.

He would never lose his way again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- In case you couldn't tell, I really, really loved (Neil Degrasse Tyson's) Cosmos. (And Cosmos: Possible Worlds, which I made a vague reference of in this fic too~)  
> \- 'why did you bring politics into this' you'd expect these two, who worked for the U.S. government after 2016, _not_ to be a little opinionated about it?  
> \- I have way too much fun doing research to write Dr. Stone fics... You can find more info on benitoite [here,](https://geology.com/gemstones/states/california.shtml#benitoite) and see what a lithophone looks like [here.](https://www.oldest.org/music/musical-instruments/)  
> \- [These](https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1VjyPHVXXXXaUXpXXq6xXFXXXk/White-Suit-Black-Lapel-Men-White-Suite-Jacket-With-Black-Trim-Wedding-Suit-Stage-Host-Black.jpg) [two](https://wegee.us/image/cache/catalog/Men/Blazer%20and%20Shirt/american-clothing-CMSB100019-6-800x984.jpg) tuxes are what I based Stanley's on, and I based Xeno's on [this](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/669945969445437446/788496341046919198/unknown.png) [one.](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/669945969445437446/788496427483004979/unknown.png)  
> \- It's a headcanon of mine that Xeno is actually really good at sewing and designing clothes. I mean, look at his outfit. Who sewed that outfit for Chelsea on super short notice? I rest my case  
> \- If the American team _doesn't_ have a geologist who hasn't been named/revealed yet, I'll be shocked.
> 
> Feel free to join the Dr. Stone shipping server on Discord! All ships are welcome! We have lots of events scheduled, RP our fave ships, share headcanons, fanart, fic and more! [Click here to join us~!](https://discord.gg/N7ejy2W)

**Author's Note:**

> \- The places Stanley and Xeno went to are based on real ones! [This](https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-windmill-soledad) is the restaurant the first scene takes place in, [this](https://www.valleyharvestinn.com/about-us/) is the motel they stayed in, and [this](https://www.tasteofthepinnacles.com/) is the restaurant where Stanley proposed! (I haven't _been_ to any of these places though)  
> \- [This](https://www.etsy.com/listing/666731780/meteorite-ring-mens-wedding-band-mens) is the ring I based the ring Stanley gave Xeno on, and [this](https://www.etsy.com/listing/806323194/meteorite-ring-mens-tungsten-wedding) is the ring Xeno gave Stanley <3  
> \- Stanley's story about his friend is based on a real story I heard from an interview with an ex-Marine on the news. I haven't been able to find a full video of the interview, but the notes I took from it afterward helped inspire me to start this fic. Support veterans, man  
> \- Double proposals is my favorite LGBT+ couple trope, so I just had to throw that in.  
> \- This has two chapters because I couldn't just end it there :3c


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